Coly is my nickname. I have grown up Coly to most of my family and friends and because of them and because of my love for jotting down what goes on in my life I have created a journal that is shared online. This blog is about myself and my adventures with trying to stay healthy, find my way in the world and not go crazy doing so. My blog will include a weekly story filled with my life, my love for cooking and a journey to becoming a dietitian and other great adventures.

Saturday, December 15, 2012

my first freelance writing

If you are keeping up with my facebook statuses I have been doing so freelance writing on the side. Ok so far I have done one article for the product Sukugo. Anyways I just finished and here it is:

Sukugo

Family Holiday
Fun

Have you ever realized the true
memory of the gifts you get on the holidays isn’t when you see them under the
tree or even when you tear apart the wrapping paper but it is the time you
spend after with the gift you have gotten? With clothing it’s when you wear it,
whether you love the clothes or not, With the toys you got it’s the memories of
playing with your friends and family, with food it’s either how sensational
that high quality Swedish chocolate tasted or how you have tofeed the rest of that nasty burnt home
fruitcake to the dumpster, and when it’s money you remember that with that $25
you bought a new CD you have been wanting for so long or a movie.

Because of this I have
been on a mission to find a gift I can enjoy with friends and family. Something
I can buy (really for myself) so that I can enjoy my time with my parents,
brothers, grandmother, cousins and friends. I have looked all over, I looked at
decorations for the house, movies that my entire family would enjoy together,
food, recipes to attempt, a small trip somewhere (even if it is just to the
zoo), but nothing came up that didn’t cost to much or that everyone would
really enjoy. The only people who would appreciate decorations for the home
would be my parents and myself, choosing a movie everyone likes is just down
right impossible, and a small trip (no matter how small) is still pricy and
food isn’t really that sentimental unless it’s made by my grandmother and it is
her ice cream cake or my grandmother (not by birth) who makes these spectacular
brownies that non can beat and my recipes are experiments that may or may not
go wrong so why should I even attempt. Don’t be let down just yet because I
finally have found what I have been looking for, Sukugo!

What is Sukugo? It is a Sudoku
board game made to be shared and played in groups. Sukugo is litarly a board
game shaped as a large Sudoku with two different shaped chips for the board.
The Smaller chips represent what may fit in the specific spot and the large chips
are the correct numbers that should be placed in a spot. For those who are
unfamiliar with Sudoku, it is a brain puzzle square-shaped game, there are
numbers placed randomly in the puzzle in each square (there are nine within a
large square), and with those numbers permanently placed you need to figure out
how to get all the rows, columns, and squares to have numbers one through nine
written down. Usually you find Sudoku books being sold at gifts shops in the
airport or in the puzzles section hidden away in a bookstore and it is made to
be played alone when you can’t sleep, are board or are flying to the end of the
world and back at least that’s when I usually play. I was just on a flight to
Israel and finished an entire book of Sudoku. I love the game and I know many
people who love it but sadly it is not a multi-player game. That is, it wasn’t
a multi-player game until now. Now there is Sukugo, the multi-player version of
Sudoku. A game I can enjoy with my little brother on Saturdays instead of
playing monopoly, a game I can take to my grandmother’s when Lucy is there and
actually playing Sudoku together rather than just sharing our Sudoku stories,
or having some bonding time with my mother which as a child used to be over
Chinese checkers.

As I do more and more research on
the game, I see it being sold as a learning tool for kids. I think now a days
that is how every toy is being sold. Just the other day I watched a commercial
about a soccer ball that teaches a baby to talk and

1.Rather than using standard educational methods… teach kids
numbers and logic by playing a game.

2.Rather than playing Sudoku alone… have fun while
collaborating and cooperating with a friend using teamwork..

3.Rather than being afraid to ask “why”… challenge each other and change
your perspective.

5.Rather than writing little numbers in squares… set smooth rounded
pieces on a large board.

6.Rather than exercising only your left brain with numbers and logic…
engage your right brain at the same time with colors and creativity.

7.Rather than just seeing and writing… engage your senses with a
hands-on tactile experience.

8.Rather than buying one type of game for kids and another for adults…
get a game everyone will enjoy.

9.Rather than sticking to
one game… use your imagination to invent new games.

what Ipad game doesn’t have some sort of lesson for
children? That didn’t really interest me at all especially since I don’t have
any kids myself. What interested me was when I was on the homepage of the
Sukugo site (http://sukugo.com) there was a
list of reason’s why I should go on Amazon.com and buy the game. The three out
of the nine reasons that caught my eyes were: numbers 2.Rather than playing Sudoku alone… have fun
while collaborating and cooperating with a friend using teamwork, 8.Rather than buying one type of
game for kids and another for adults… get a game everyone will enjoy, and
9.Rather than sticking to one game… use
your imagination to invent new games. Number two pretty much explained
throughout this article already but what about numbers eight and nine? Eight I
did touch base on a tiny bit but let me go deeper a little. Sudoku is a game
known to be played by the older generations or by puzzle nerds like myself so
you know you can get adults to play if they play sudoku as for kids it’s a fun
new game to play with the family. Imagine your son or daughter opening up that
board game under the Christmas tree. As I mentioned he/she might be stumped
considering it wasn’t a more known game like Monopoly or Apples to Apples but
then you say, “how about we all play together?” If your family is anything like
my this game will turn into a full fledge competition to see who can get the
most chips on the board or it will become one of those games you get to see who
can finish the game the fastest because heaven for bid a board game stays
peaceful. Both you as an adult, your kids, and even grandparents can enjoy this
game and as I mentioned it might even become a tradition. I did pretty much
just explain number nine a little bit. How can you be inventive with a game
that is pretty much self- explanatory? Make it a competition! It will become a
competition in my family and with my friends. How about changing up the rules
like you would with an extreme Sudoku book? In a Sudoku book you can find
different ways you have to place the numbers like having the diagonal lines
also needing the numbers one through nine or a zig-zag and so forth. Why not
pick an extreme Sudoku book with these types of puzzles and make it into a
Sukugo game? You can do so much with one board game why not explore a new way
to play on the holidays?

Sukugo,
Sudoku for everyone to enjoy after opening up presents. The game you can make a
tradition during family time around the table. Sukugo, a game you can enjoy,
your kids will enjoy, and your friends can enjoy for the holidays and for
holidays to come. Now go buy at least one and then one for your friends who
live far away (make it a social networking game). My plan is to do just the
same. Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and Happy Sukugo!

Ok for some reason the pictures aren't showing on my blogger but there were some there. sorry about that.

About Me

I am a nutritionist trying to inspire. I went from weighing 268 pounds and playing video games for exercise to working out regularly cooking healthy meals and working out religiously. My experiences and lessons come from my religion, family, friends and places I get to explore. I love to find new ways to cook healthy meals and just enjoy life and I love to vent about all of it in my blogs.